Fans Slam KL Rahul For MS Dhoni's Dismissal Against Afghanistan, But Is He Really At Fault?

Having already secured their berth for the final, the Indian cricket team was seen resting as many as five of their regular players to test their bench strength during the Super Four clash against Afghanistan at the 2018 Asia Cup on 25th September. The move gave a much-needed opportunity to the second-stringers, who have been lurking in the shadows of the first-choice cricketers.

The absence of Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan presented a perfect opportunity for KL Rahul - one of India's rising talents - to prove his mettle and, maybe, show his captain and selectors what he is capable of. And, for the swashbuckling Rahul we know, the Karnataka cricketer grabbed the opportunity with both hands.

Chasing a moderate total of 252 runs, the right-hander opened the innings with Ambati Rayudu, who was promoted up the order in the Indian batting line-up. Playing his first game in the tournament, Rahul couldn't have begun any better as he rode the bounce to flay a blistering cut shot towards the boundary on the very first delivery.

Though he struggled initially for timing, Rahul, soon, made his presence felt in the middle with some fine stroke-play against both the Afghanistan quicks and spinners. He smashed four boundaries and a six on his way to only the second fifty of his ODI career for India.

Eager to convert his fifty into a hundred, Rahul was going about his business pretty well despite the loss of his partner Rayudu at the other end. But, in the 21st over, the elegant Indian opener was foxed by cunning Rashid Khan. Batting on 60 runs, Rahul was looking to play the reverse sweep when the ball landed on the middle stump and struck his back leg. The umpire took his time before eventually raising the 'finger of death'.

However, after a brief consultation with Dinesh Karthik at the non-striker's end, Rahul decided to review the decision through DRS. With the impact right in the middle, the only thing that could've saved Rahul was the edge. But, after watching the replays, the third umpire ruled him out as both the ball-tracking and UltraEdge spelt his doom.

"It's very tricky when you have just one review with you. Obviously, looking back at it, I felt like I shouldn't have taken the review but at that time, in the middle, I felt like maybe I was struck outside and I wanted to take that chance," Rahul said at the post-match press conference.

Rahul's DRS call meant that India lost a review and the fans weren't exactly happy about it. For a pretty sure-shot dismissal, the Indian cricket fans slammed Rahul for wasting India's review and then blamed him for MS Dhoni's dismissal.

KL Rahul was also famous for wasting reviews in recent Test Series Against England

KL Rahul used the review when India was in a commanding position and he didn't seem confident. So considering the match situation even if he didn't use his review India were in a good position. But once the review is wasted then you lose the right to criticize the umpire.

KL Rahul played a fancy reverse sweep exposing middle &Leg stumps,knowing that he was out wasted the review,as no reviews left Dhoni & Karthik both had to pay for POOR UMPIRING,Rayadu also thrown his wicket when he was set. DISAPPOINTING !Jadeja Rashid Dhoni Asia Cup #INDvAFG, pic.twitter.com/BoqmfXkP3O

The general consensus is that if Rahul didn't go for the DRS over his dismissal, India would've had a review which, in turn, could have been used by Dhoni to save his wicket. But, is he really at fault? No, we don't think so.

Anyone who has followed cricket over the years would know the importance of the non-striker in pulling off a successful DRS call. The batsman at the non-striker's end has often been seen providing assistance to the batsman (on strike) since they are arguably in the best position to ascertain if the on-field umpire erred.

In Rahul's case, it was Dinesh Karthik who was standing at the non-striker's end. After the umpire ruled him out, Rahul consulted Karthik who advised the Indian opener to review on-field umpire's decision. But, since Karthik was standing wide of the crease, he was surely not in the best of positions - something that VVS Laxman pointed out from the commentary box - to aid Rahul. And, the result was quite evident.